The Heirloom
by Evil Cheshire Cat
Summary: When Fuji inherits a house, he wastes no time in moving in with Atobe, Sanada, and Tezuka. But he's about to find out there's more he got than just a house. FujixRyoma
1. Chapter 1

"The Heirloom"

Disclaimer: insert witty speech of non-ownership

Author's Note: I'm back, baby, and back to Thrill Pair! This may resemble Into the Demon's Den (and thus, The Grudge/Ju-On) but later on, it becomes a bit more different I would hope.

Fuji couldn't help the smile that curled his lips as he looked around the house. He trailed after the lawyer who had informed him that he was Zhao Tseng, a family lawyer for the Fuji's. He had tuned the older man out some time ago, possibly shortly after they had passed the threshold. He didn't care about the numbers, how far the land went; he preferred the history of the place and its appearance.

The house was ten minutes out of the city, nestled amongst ginkgo trees and the occasional cherry or plum tree for more color. A few feet from the massive building was a little river that aided in the city's water supply further down the path.

His new residence had three stories, not including the attic. Tseng had claimed that said attic was spacious enough to stand up and move around in comfortably; that was hearsay though, due to the fact that the key for it had been lost years ago. It has possibly been lost with the original owners.

For a place that had been abandoned twenty years ago, it wasn't horribly falling into decay just yet. The first floor had been in the best condition; the windows still in tact, only a few papers scattered around and fine layer of dust. The second floor was in slightly worse condition; windows were caked slightly with grime and there were tattered cloth on the ground. The third floor seemed to be worse. The filth reached a new level, blocking out sunlight.

As they walked past rooms on this floor, Fuji peeked into ones that had an open door. The rooms weren't in much better condition; rotted drapes were desperately clinging to rusted rods. A few chairs had been left behind and time had worked them over. Pieces were lying scattered and one chose that moment to crack and break further.

Fuji moved away from his tour, going to where the low wall that allowed you to look down at the other floors was. His foot connected with…something but he decided not to check what it was. He had learned his lesson on the second floor when he found something that vaguely looked like a misshapen bone.

He stared down at the levels under him. It seemed so unnaturally dark on this story. On the others, there had been at least weak light from the sun trying to get through dust and dirt on the windows. But here…here any sign of light just seemed to stop at the fifth step before you hit floorboards again.

There was a soft sound of creaking behind him and he straightened quickly, getting ready to be faced with Tseng once more. He frowned slightly as he realized Tseng had gone on ahead, not noticing he had stayed behind.

The sound came again. It was just a soft noise; the house was settling perhaps. He pushed away from the wall and went in the direction he had heard it. He was faced with one final flight of stairs, these made out of wood unlike its predecessors.

He stared at the closed door at the very top with more concentration than was probably necessary. The door itself was beginning to rot through, much like the stairs, and odds were pretty soon there wouldn't be need for a key. The tensai felt himself enthralled with this room and he couldn't be sure why. Maybe it was like telling someone they couldn't do something; it was off limits so it became all the more interesting. Maybe-"Fuji-san," Tseng finally noticed he had lost his charge.

Fuji turned, quickening his steps to return to the Chinese man's side. "Sorry, sorry."

Tseng gave a slight nod, expression completely blank. "As I was saying, I would advise you to sell this place as soon as possible."

"What?" he was startled into opening his eyes.

"This house has a…colorful history," there was a slight hesitation but then he quickly breezed past that subject, "Plus, it's so large…it's a bit excessive for just one person."

Fuji smiled serenely as his eyes slipped closed once more. He ran a finger lightly over a mirror. It came away almost black with dirt and there still was no sign of where it had trailed down. "Sometimes," he offered, "a colorful history is the best. I'm more than positive that I can find at least one person to stay with me."

"Fuji-san…"

"I like this house, Zhao-san," his voice was firm, "I mean, it almost feels like it was made for me."

It was easy finding roommates, just as Fuji predicted. Atobe had been complaining about how crowded the city was and how small even the houses were. Sanada and Tezuka, even though they never showed much emotion or complained out loud, Fuji always noticed how tense they were. A place just outside of the city was just what they needed.

Tezuka surveyed the bottom floor, half amazed at how quickly it had been managed to be cleaned up. But the other half of himself was wondering how 'come live with me' translated to 'come live with me and watch over the cleaners/movers' but with Fuji, it was always wiser not to question.

He felt movement to his left. "Why do I get the feeling that he hired the Three Stooges?" Sanada murmured. Tezuka spared him a glance, noticing the same posture he was currently sporting.

"Nonsense," came Atobe's voice to his right, "there's four of them." He put a hand to his hip, scowling a little.

Kamio, Shinji, Aoi and Momo were never supposed to work together, Tezuka was positive. Was the company they came from playing a cruel joke? Or had they simply no idea how terribly they worked together? If they were separated, they would have been marginally competent but together…Kamio and Momo argued all the time, from how to carry out orders to what exactly the orders were. Shinji mumbled constant complaints about his coworkers and, while he could work and mumble at the same time, complaining mumbles were another story. Aoi seemed to be the only one willing to work with the others but was slowly getting frustrated with the fact that no one was listening to him.

Tezuka scowled. "Kamio, Shinji, go start moving things in. Momo, start cleaning up the second floor. Aoi, you take the third floor."

"R-right!" came the quick agreement. They seemed a little dazed at his interference, like they had forgotten all about them. Kamio quickly glared at Momo as he followed Shinji out. Momo returned the glare with force as Aoi started piling on the things they'd need.

When they got to the second floor, Aoi stared up into the dark level. "You think they hate me?" he questioned a little hesitantly.

Momo's good nature returned as he noticed the traces of nervousness. "Have fun." Aoi gave him a weak glare but started up the next flight. His spiky haired coworker started whistling as he dropped his things to the floor.

Aoi peered around when he reached the third story. Damn it was dark…he told himself he was still merely standing there to let his eyes adjust. That was all it was, really. But something felt…wrong. That air was staler up here, more so than anywhere else in the house they had gone through. No matter how stale it was, though, it almost seemed like it was hiding something. There was a scent under the other, one that he couldn't quite place.

He jolted as he realized it was far too quiet up here too. Momo was only sixteen steps below him and Aoi couldn't hear anything, not the whistling or the sound of him cleaning. And Momo was NOT a quiet man by any means. The third floor was like it's own little vacuum of space, its only little bubble of time.

There was a noise down the hall, like something dropping to floor that had had some weight to it. He turned fast enough to make him dizzy to look down the steps. God he could even see where light stopped and darkness began clearly. "Momo?" he called. It wasn't going to do any good. He was trapped up here; he was positive and no one would ever see him again! "Momo!"

"What is it, Aoi?" Momo demanded in annoyance, coming into view.

Aoi faltered, swallowing. "…hi?"

Momo stared up at him in silence for a minute and then walked away, grumbling softly. Aoi switched positions, taking a deep breath. Okay, he couldn't hear anyone but they could hear him; that was okay. He could live with that.

He steeled his nerves, straightening his back. He made his way to the end of the hall, trying to find what had made that noise. He looked around, squinting slightly. Why hadn't his eyes adjusted yet? He crouched down, patting the floor lightly.

His hands closed around a smooth object and he pulled it close. It was a jar of some kind. He looked up at the ceiling. Had it come from up there? He shook it lightly and there was a rattle. He held open his hand, turning the jar upside down and shaking it lightly. Nothing came out.

He set it down and stared at it. The rattle came again, almost causing him to topple over. His attention was drawn to another flight of stairs. "How many floors does this place have?" he questioned out loud while he stood up.

As if in response, there seemed to be a sigh from above him. Cautiously, he went to the first wooden step, putting his foot on it. He began walking up, pausing on each one. As he neared the door, he swore he could hear something like a voice. It spoke softly, too softly for any words to be understood.

Had someone tried to sneak in and gotten stuck? He crouched down, peering through the gap between the floor and the door. Gold eyes met his and he yelped. He hadn't expected anyone to actually be there! He straightened quickly, taking a quick notice of the rather large hole in the door.

"Hello?" he called out, leaning slightly against the door. He pressed his eye to the hole, trying to see in. Was it possible that this place was even darker than the third floor? "Um…anyone there?" He couldn't SEE anyone…but the sound of a voice was still there. Louder now but…he still couldn't understand a word of it.

He pushed away, backing down the stairs. "Maybe I'm hallucinating…" he told himself. He really didn't want to turn his back on that door though. He backed up until he was on the floor and ducked behind the other wall.

A shudder shook his body. He wanted to go home. Now. He went for the second floor but hesitated before going to the next floor. "Oi! Aoi, what are you doing down here?" Momo demanded as he stepped out of one of the rooms.

The younger man snapped out of his haze. "Ah? Momo, do you think…there's anyway for someone to be trapped in the…I think it was the attic?"

Momo frowned at that. "Eh? No way! You saw how high this place is; it wouldn't make sense to go all the way up there." Aoi nodded absently. "You okay? Something happen up there?"

"Nothing," he assured with a quick grin. "I was just curious because…it seems like a haunted house, you know? Kids always like to check out haunted houses!"

"You still ARE a kid, Aoi. Get back to work."

tbc

More soon, I would imagine. If you want to poke me personally, IM at ChaosGaillart. I will pimp that forever and ever and ever and ever.


	2. Chapter 2

Notes: I forgot to mention in the first chapter there will be character deaths. Some of them were even hard for me to write because I like them all. But yes, character deaths are in a horror story.

* * *

Yuuta glanced at his older brother, scowling a little. What had made him agree to even see this place? Whatever Fuji wanted him to do, Yuuta had quickly learned he wanted to do the opposite. It wasn't that he didn't love Fuji…it was just he never fully liked him or trusted him. Just when he thought he was starting to like his brother, he'd pull some trick or do something that just utterly pissed Yuuta off.

"It's really a nice house," Fuji was saying as he drove. "Very big. There'd be room for you…if you wanted to," he added quickly.

See, those were the kinds of things that had Yuuta almost liking him again. He sighed slightly, "I don't know. I mean, I've settled where I am. Moving is always such a hassle." Besides, Fuji's friends were there. Fuji's friends were always the ones to call him "Fuji's little brother" as if he had no identity of his own.

Fuji gave a bigger smile, obviously pleased at the not quite firm answer. "Well, just take a look at it. At the very least, you can join us for a drink."

"…I'm not twenty one yet, aniki."

There was a soft laugh. "There was never any harm in having one glass, was there?"

"With you? Probably." There was another laugh. At least Fuji didn't take offense to most of Yuuta's words anymore. That was a bonus.

The car silently pulled into a large space of land that was home to two other cars and a van currently. Fuji got out after parking, watching the young men putting away their things. "Finished for the day?" Yuuta mutely got out as well.

Kamio glanced up, nodding. "Yeah, we got everything moved in and tomorrow we can come in and finish cleaning and repairing."

"Very good. I'm glad my associate wasn't wrong about you."

Kamio bowed his head quickly before turning to the others. "Let's head back, okay?" Shinji was in the car, mumbling about how he really didn't want to come back and clean. Momo soon followed suit. "Oi, Aoi!" he called to their youngest member. Aoi had his back to the van, staring out at the house that looked vaguely sinister in the dying light. Kamio wandered over, grabbing his shoulder. "Aoi."

"Wha-what!" Aoi flailed.

"Let's go, come on." He pushed the other along.

Yuuta watched as the van began to pull away and turned to face the house. He could barely repress the shudder that wanted to work its way up his spine. There was nothing truly ominous about the house; it looked like a normal building really. Just more…well, more. "Ready to see the inside?" Fuji said softly at his shoulder, almost making him jump.

"Yeah," he said after a moment of hesitation, "sure." He started to follow Fuji up the well worn path. He was struck at how silent it was here. There wasn't much in the way of birds singing, or crickets beginning to chirp. There was only the sound of their feet crushing down rebellious blades of grass.

When they entered, Yuuta wanted to refuse to take off his shoes. He shook himself off at that ridiculous thought; really, he was being paranoid. What did he think Fuji had done to the house that he would have to be in a hurry to get away from?

Three familiar faces were in what he could only guess was going to be used as a living room. Not much was there right now; a couch, two chairs, and a small table had been brought in. But Atobe Keigo lived here now, there was no doubt that he'd somehow manage to fill this place up.

Speaking of Atobe, Yuuta almost snorted as he saw the diva checking his reflection in one of the seemingly ancient mirrors. Sanada and Tezuka had taken up residence on the couch and were up to the much more normal activity of reading. "Did you have fun today?" Fuji questioned as he came in.

Tezuka scowled at his book. "Those were some of the most annoying movers you could possibly hire," Sanada filled in helpfully.

"Didn't go well for you?" Fuji asked brightly, not even feigning sympathy. "Maybe they'll be better tomorrow."

"I seriously doubt that," Atobe commented as he turned away from the mirror to rejoin the group. "Do you just some how know what will be annoying?"

Yuuta bit his tongue from saying that Fuji WAS annoying, so of course he'd know what was. But if he kept quiet, it seemed it would take longer for them to acknowledge him. Fuji took the bottle of alcohol that had been set on the table. "But of course. It amuses me to watch others suffer," the cheerful tone didn't abate as he began pouring glasses.

The younger Fuji brother found himself drifting away from the living room, choosing to look at the outer hall more. He peered up at the ceiling, into the other room that looked like it might be a dining room. He glanced up the darkened steps that led to the other floors. "Yuuta," he was pulled back from his inspection at Fuji's voice.

He returned to the living room, accepting the glass of red liquid. "Thanks, aniki." He sipped it slowly, hanging back a little. He didn't particularly want to sit, which might indicate that he wanted to have a lasting visit.

Tezuka offered Yuuta a courteous nod before looking back to Fuji. "How long has this house been in your family?"

Fuji moved his way around the living room. "Possibly over a hundred years. They only called me and told me about it last week." When the expected grumbling from Yuuta about not being called about the place too, he continued. "Apparently it was abandoned twenty years ago."

"Why?" Sanada questioned, taking a drink.

Silence reigned for a minute as Fuji pondered the question. "I'm not sure," he admitted, "Maybe it was the site of a horrendous murder!" he looked and sounded positively ecstatic, his free hand coming up to clasp the other around his glass.

The other occupants of the room sputtered for a minute. "You shouldn't be so cheerful about that, aniki," Yuuta hissed, wiping a hand on his shirt. It was going to stain, he knew. This was probably his punishment for agreeing to this.

"But wouldn't that be interesting?" the tensai questioned, "And the lawyer who showed it to me said there was a…colorful history."

"Those are things you should find out before agreeing to keep it," Sanada was capable of keeping a lecturing voice as he tried to clear his air passage.

"Why?" he asked curiously, "Think the murderer would still be out there?"

The other young man merely shook his head and turned away. Like everyone who knew Fuji, he knew not to argue. How did one explain to a lover of the macabre that a murder site wasn't exactly the best place to live due to bad karma?

Fuji didn't seem all that aware to the discomfort he caused and finished his wine. He set the glass back onto the table with a firm thump. He grabbed Yuuta's arm. "Let me show you around!"

"Aniki…"

"Yuuta, you're considering staying here, aren't you? You should at least see the entire place." With that said, Fuji set Yuuta's glass down as well and started for the stairs.

"Aniki, I never said I was considering it! Aniki!" he protested. He stumbled after, protesting the entire way. Finally he gave up trying to get away. Fuji's grip relaxed ever so slightly. "Is there really that much to show me?" he questioned.

"Well," Fuji started, "not really. We only have the second floor. The third is still…we haven't figured out what to do with it." He smiled at Yuuta, "See? More than enough room for you!"

Once again, Yuuta felt himself faltering with his opinion. "No, I don't think so," he said as he was pulled along the second floor. It was hard making out things but he was managing it. "Like I said, I'm happy where I am. It's…it's the perfect location." That was a lie but what was he supposed to tell his brother? The house gave him about the same amount of creeps as Fuji himself did.

"Are you positive?" he sounded so disappointed.

It's not like you're going to be lacking for company, aniki." Yuuta pointed out. But even in the darkness he could see the disappointed look. "I'll be sure to visit often though," another lie, but it caused Fuji to brighten again. The things he wouldn't do for family…

* * *

Tezuka shifted on his bed, trying to arrange his pillows in a manner that would allow him to read but wouldn't cause his neck to ache after ten minutes. It was a surprisingly hard task to do. He should probably just go to sleep, it WAS getting late, but he had reached a point in the book he didn't particularly feel like waiting for.

Unfortunately, he felt his mind beginning to wander, no matter how much he tried to make it focus. Despite the grievances that were their movers, they had done a surprisingly fast job once separated. All the furniture had been brought in and placed in their corresponding rooms. The floor had made good head way of being cleaned, though he wasn't sure about the level above.

It was almost amusing to watch Fuji talk about the house, he reflected. He acted as if it was his personal child; that it had been made just for him. He wasn't the type to really do that, so it was fairly interesting to see it in play.

He closed the book with loud smack, groaning lightly. He wasn't going to be getting any reading done tonight. He set it on the table, pulling his glasses off to rest on it. He flopped back onto his pillows after the light went off.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed. He knew he must have drifted off because to be woken up, one had to be sleeping first. He didn't wake up fully, not sure if something was truly worth getting up for. He strained as much as possible to try and see if his senses could pick up what had jarred him. "Tezuka," it was soft whisper of a voice. He couldn't even be sure he heard it.

There was the creak of floorboards behind him. He slowly opened his eyes, staring at the blurred image of the window. That meant his back was to the door…"Tezuka," came the sigh and another creaking.

It clicked suddenly what the voice sounded like. "What do you want, Fuji?" he questioned, gripping his pillow tighter. There was no response, but Tezuka knew someone was there behind him. He could feel his eyes. He sat up, staring at the area of the door. "Fuji?" he demanded sleepily. He could see his friend's outline, see the white shirt he always wore as pajamas but it was more blob than anything.

He reached for his glasses, knocking the book off in the process. He yawned as he slipped them on. "Fuji, what did…you…" he trailed off as the blob disappeared. It didn't shape itself into a more firm image of Fuji. It had simply…disappeared. He was left staring at empty space.

Quietly, he rose from his bed and went to the door. It was firmly closed. He opened it slowly, peering down each side of the hall way. Everything was quiet, dark and still. He shut the door firmly behind him.

Must have been a dream, he told himself. Those things happened, especially in new surroundings. He made his way back to his bed, setting his glasses down once more. With a soft huff, he burrowed back under the covers. Above him, the third floor creaked slowly as the house settled.

tbc

Yay, more has been written and I'm sure I'll get more done…..eventually! If anyone is interested in other stories, you can go check out previews on my website, which I will have up some time today. You'll find my website on my profile of course.

But if you read something there, you should TOTALLY e-mail or reply on here that you like it. Totally.


	3. Chapter 3

The coming of morning brought the young men from the day before back. Despite their short comings, they were punctual at least, Sanada observed. Most of them anyway. "Damn it," Kamio sighed as he hung up his cell phone before once more dialing a number.

"Oi! I thought we were supposed to be working?" Momo commented from where he was unloading cleaning supplies.

Kamio glared at him with his one visible eye, not commenting right away. He hung up the phone again. "Shinji," he demanded as his friend hopped out of the van. "Did you see Aoi at the office?" he questioned.

Shinji blinked languidly, "Yes but it was last night before we left for home. I haven't seen him yet. Tch, he's late. We all arrived on time, why didn't he? Is he just going to come out and meet us here? Ah, perhaps he's skipping out on work all together…" He continued muttering as he headed inside.

Momo frowned slightly before letting out a breath. "Don't spaz," before Kamio could yell at him, he continued, "He was acting weird all last night. Maybe he got over worked or he was sick or something. We can go by his place after the job."

Kamio ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, you're right. We still have work to do."

"We? What's this we business? You never do anything! You just complain!"

Dark eyes snapped into a glare. "What! I do more work than you any day! I'll prove it!" He grabbed some of the things they were going to be carrying in and hurried after Shinji, well aware of Momo scrambling after.

Fuji smiled as he was almost run over by the two enthusiastic workers. "Maaa, they certainly are morning people," he observed cheerfully. Sanada just grunted a reply. "Are we the only ones here?"

"I think Atobe is still asleep but Tezuka left for work all ready." Sanada was beginning to wish he had work today. This was becoming too much of a headache in his opinion. He should see if he could just go and live in the apartment they had basically abandoned. "They'll be finished today?"

"Mmhmm," Fuji nodded, "And then Atobe can start redecorating."

"Why did you have to invite him along with?"

"Well, we're all friends, aren't we? It would have been rude to just leave him."

Sanada raised an eyebrow, "He over heard you talking about it and invited himself along."

Fuji beamed at him, "Something like that." He glanced out the window, "Admit it, if we had left Atobe back there you would have missed him." There was something suspiciously like a snort.

"Have you figured out what you want to do with the third floor yet?" Sanada changed the subject finally.

There was a slight down turn of Fuji's lips. "No. Maybe we'll just have to set up some offices or possibly guest rooms…" he trailed off slowly, staring at the wall. The movers upstairs were certainly being LOUD, in his opinion. He could hear them thumping and it sounded like they were using a hammer. It made his head hurt and feel like it was swelling up to pop.

He jolted back to attention when Sanada put a hand on his shoulder. "FUJI."

Fuji shook his head sharply as the noise disappeared. He looked at Sanada, his customary smile returning. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

The other boy gave him a look. "I said, maybe you could just leave it alone, or use it for storage."

"Clean it up to collect dust?" he chuckled softly. "We'll think of something to do with it. But now I think I want to see how our workers are doing."

* * *

Kamio had a bad feeling. He had had it since last night. Mostly it was just a gut feeling but some of it had been inspired by Aoi's reactions. They were working silently for once, a feat that should have been impossible with Shinji there.

He glanced up to confirm everyone was still there. Shinji was flitting in and out of rooms, carrying out old linen and chairs that Aoi had missed while Momo was hauling them down to be tossed. Kamio smiled a little; so they COULD manage to work together.

The smile was lost as he turned back to his own task. He hadn't been asked to but he was checking the steps that led up to the attic. There wasn't much of a point but he didn't have much else to do when he didn't have to monitor others.

For stairs that hadn't seen the light of day, they were in good repair. Only a couple of them looked like they may need to see work. He jerked when he heard the door up ahead creak. He stared at it for a second before cautiously going back to work. It was an old door; it was shifting in its frame. It was going to make noise as it settled.

He continued to investigate the stairs, slowly walking up them. He tested the final step; there seemed to be a dark stain but nothing too bad. He nodded to himself, turning to head back down the stairs.

He started a little when he saw a dark shadow at the bottom of the stairs, almost slipping. One of his hands scrambled for something to grab before he regained his footing. "Fuji-san," he greeted, clearing his throat.

Fuji smiled, gesturing for him to come down. "Kamio-san, you have tools at your disposal, right?" He turned to watch Shinji and Momo.

"Ah…right."

"Do you think you could remove that door for me?" Without even looking, he pointed to the attic.

Kamio needlessly followed the point and took a deep breath. "Yes, we can do that," his words sounded distant to himself. He couldn't exactly deny a customer's request…unless he had lied to begin with. Why hadn't he thought of that?

Said customer brightened at words. "Excellent! I-" he was cut off by the overly cheerful ring of a cell phone. It was enough to cause Momo to drop a chair part. "Sorry, sorry," he apologized quickly, though he looked more amused than sorry. He pulled out his phone, "Hello? Oh…right now? No, no, Yuuta, just clarifying. I'll be there soon." As he hung up, he looked even more cheerful, which Kamio was fairly certain was impossible. "I have to go out for a little while. I expect that door to be down by the time I get back."

"Of course," the red head agreed without thinking. He watched Fuji leave, practically bouncing, before he turned to look back up at the door. "Oi, Momo, next trip down, grab the tools. Shinji, come over here," he pointed to the spot next to him.

"Tch, ordering us around like you own us," he distinctly heard Momo grumble as he went down.

Shinji's complaining didn't become clear until he drew closer. "…and Aoi, not showing up. Who does he think he is?"

"Come on, Shinji," he took his friend's arm, leading him up the steps. He glanced around as he stationed Shinji by the doorknob. "Perfect," he grinned. They would both fit comfortably through the duration of the removal, it seemed. As Momo returned, he questioned, "Did you guys finish?" He wanted to get out of here as soon as possible and that might very well be after they got the door down.

"No thanks to YOU," Momo gave him a pointed look.

"I was supervising," he huffed, taking a proffered tool.

"Supervising?" he demanded heatedly.

They continued to bicker back and forth as Kamio started unhinging the door. Shinji was hit with it before he realized he was, indeed, supposed to be helping move it.

Carefully they dragged it down the stairs, trying not to trip over there own two feet. "Damn," Momo cursed softly as they leaned the door against a wall, "I got a splinter." He held his finger up closer to his face. Damn wooden doors; whose idea was it to make them out of wood anyway?

Kamio didn't comment, all ready looking back at the now open room. Was it just him or were the shadows that were spilling out look almost like clawed hands clutching at the frame? He started moving back up, unsure WHY he was. It felt like someone had tied a rope around his body and was pulling; he could break free but it was so much easier to give in.

Working on the third floor had given him enough time to adjust to almost darkness, on some level he was grateful for that. "Shinji, Momo!" he called down, "Go get Sanada-san!" he ordered. When the two just stared at him blankly, he snapped, "Move!"

tbc

Suddenly, Greatest General! Hundreds of them! I'm letting Ragnarok Online eat my brain, how lame.

But an update, yay. We're getting closer to Ryoma. Which means we're getting closer to FujiRyoma. Huzzah.


	4. Chapter 4

Atobe had been having a peaceful enough morning. He had slept the entire night through with no issue of outside noise or roommates moving around; he had even been able to sleep in. He recalled stirring when those movers had come up the stairs with no respect for others.

He had finally decided to get up and was just finishing dressing when he heard the commotion going on outside. He went to the door, frowning as he peered out. "What is going on?" he demanded when he spotted Sanada being practically dragged upstairs by Momo.

Sanada looked to him, mirroring the frown. "Something about the attic," he glared at Momo slightly, trying to will the younger boy into telling him what was happening.

On the third floor, Shinji had gotten half way up the steep steps before stopping. He looked down at Momo, "Kamio went inside. He hasn't come out yet and I don't hear anything…do you think shadows eat people? Maybe that's what happened to him…but I don't think Kamio would taste all that good…"

Sanada shook Momo off, stalking past Shinji and to the attic. When he entered, he was shocked at the sheer stench of decay. The other floors had been musty but aired out within hours. Here, it hung heavy and even when you refused to breath through your nose, it clung to the back of your throat.

As his eyes adjusted, he made out squiggly designs on the wall. He moved closer, eyes narrowing. Kanji, he realized, very old kanji that he couldn't understand. He turned slightly, spotting Kamio's back. He was couched over something, hands hovering just above it.

But then the thing moved, shifting until Sanada realized it was a PERSON. "What's this?" he demanded, causing Kamio to jump. "Who is he? How'd he get in here?" He wasn't quite sure when or why he had classified it as a male.

Kamio turned so quickly he actually toppled over. "We…I'm not sure!" he sputtered, eyes big. "When we took down the door…he…he was HERE."

Damn, it was next to impossible making out any features. "Bring him down to the first floor," he commanded.

Kamio looked down at the person and pushed himself up into a standing position. "No," he said quickly, "I was hired to move things, not people." He didn't know why he was protesting so much. Any other time he would have done so; happily in fact. But he wanted out of this room, out of this house, and away from this person.

He pushed Sanada to the side and all but ran to the third floor, not even waiting for Momo or Shinji. "Kamio!" Momo yelped, looking to Shinji. Shinji frowned deeply, picked up his muttering and followed his co-workers.

Sanada looked even more displeased, turning back to their little mystery. "Can you walk?" he questioned. There was no response. He gave a gruff sound, leaning over him. After he scooped up the tiny body, he almost wanted to drop it again. Though it had moved, it felt like all he had was a sack of bones. But he kept his gold as he left the attic.

"What did they find?" Atobe asked, eyeing the burden. "Sanada?" The other man breezed past him. What was with everyone ignoring him? He turned, storming after.

When they reached the first floor, Sanada didn't want to look down. Logic dictated that no one should have been in that room. The door had been locked for a long time and there were no windows for someone to crawl in. If he looked down, was he going to be holding some age old corpse like in…what was that movie Fuji enjoyed for months? Oh yes, Ring. The body looked normal in darkness, maybe even moved normally, but then the withered away into a decrepit skeleton.

Finally he forced himself to look down. The body was…normal looking. His burden was a normal looking twelve year old boy. Gold eyes flicked closed against the bright sunlight before he lifted an arm covered by a white yukata sleeve to aid his hiding. Black hair was mussed quite heavily. And for someone who had been in a dark attic for an indeterminate amount of time, he wasn't as pale or thin as one would expect.

Sanada moved them to the living room and set the boy down. "Sanada," Atobe glared unhappily from his roommate to the child.

"I'm not sure," he responded to the unasked question. "You should go call Fuji."

"ME? Why ME?"

"Well unless YOU want to try talking to him," he gestured to the couch. Atobe pursed his lips as he stared at the boy, who finally lifted his gaze. He felt something stop inside him when those gold eyes narrow slightly.

Sanada was faintly fascinated at the way the two seemed to be locked into a staring match. Finally, Atobe turned away, stalking from the room, but still the boy's eyes followed him. "What's your name?" he questioned, deciding that was the best build up.

Attention was refocused for a brief moment and Sanada felt some hope that they were getting somewhere. Which was promptly dashed when the boy turned away with a grumpy huff.

* * *

Fuji was mildly discontent. His visit with Yuuta had been going so nicely; his younger brother had actually wanted his help…but it had been ruined when Yuuta's coworker had shown up. There was just something about that man (what had been his name?) that rubbed Fuji the wrong way.

He was actually grateful when Atobe had called him saying he needed to come back to the house. As far as he could determine, something had been found in the attic. Something that had caused the diva to sound distracted and a little bit…Fuji wanted to say it was concern he had heard lurking. And anything that caused Atobe to act like that, he definitely wanted to see.

He pulled on to his land, noting that in addition to Tezuka's car still missing that the van was gone as well. His pace was a little hurried, more than a little excited to see what had been found. Atobe was standing a little ways away from the front door, looking like he was contemplating bolting. "Fuji," he greeted when he finally noticed his housemate.

Fuji smiled, tilting his head ever so slightly. "Well?"

"It's in the living room with Sanada." He cast a glance in the direction, a small frown marring his features.

Fuji let him take the lead, secretly delighting in the discomfort he was detecting from him. Sanada seemed much in the same position as Atobe; pacing, frazzled enough to show. "That's not an it," he pointed out cheerfully when he saw the 'thing' on the couch.

The boy lifted his head when he heard Fuji speak, turning around quickly. "You were in the attic?" Fuji asked pleasantly, walking over. His movements were tracked by eyes that practically glowed. "What's your name?"

"He refuses to-" Sanada started.

"Ryoma." Fuji had expected, if the boy WAS capable of speech, that it would have been hoarse and weak. It WAS somewhat faint and it did crack a little on the last syllable but that may have been due to adolescence since 'Ryoma' didn't look much older than thirteen at most.

"You're Ryoma?" the smile grew, "How did you get in my home?"

Ryoma merely turned away, finding interest in watching his own toes flex. "I'll inform the police," Sanada started to reach for his cell phone.

Fuji stopped him with an easy "Why?" He put a hand lightly on Ryoma's head, tilting it back. "It's not like he's done anything wrong."

Sanada stared at his friend for a brief moment, seeming to process the words that were spoken to him. "He may be a lost child."

"Are you a lost child, Ryoma-kun?" he asked Ryoma.

"No," after he said it, Ryoma half shook his head in an attempt to dislodge the hand.

"He's not a lost child."

Sanada had to wonder if Fuji was losing what little sanity he originally had. 'He's not a lost child' was not an appropriate answer in this situation. "What else would he be?"

"A mass hallucination," it was said with as straight of face as Fuji was going to get. "But a cute one." Ryoma didn't appear to be overly concerned that his very existence was being questioned.

"Fuji," Sanada tried once more, pulling him away from the couch, "this is serious. We found a child in an attic. An attic that had a locked door for YEARS and no logical way of getting in."

Fuji leaned forward to impart great wisdom. "It helps prove my hallucination theory, doesn't it?" At the older man's glare, he conceded a little. "Well, maybe there's some back way in there. Nobody could be sure."

Sanada took that idea and clutched it to his chest. It was a better theory, in his opinion, than 'hallucination'. "Ryoma, you need to-"

"No, no, no," Fuji put a hand on shoulder, "what fun is it letting him TELL us? Let's look for ourselves."

"Wha-" he was again interrupted. It was being to tick him off.

"Atobe, would you mind watching Ryoma-kun? We don't want him disappearing should the attic be filled with some unimaginable horror." Sanada was positive he was being mocked. What was worse, there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it short of calling Fuji on it. That was a risk all its own.

"You want ME to watch him?" Atobe crossed his arms over his chest. He was not happy with this turn of events. He had avoided staying with the brat to begin with.

Fuji kept smiling, "Though he's hiding it well, he's been watching you since you came into this room."

Atobe looked at Ryoma, who was openly staring now. There was a small quirk to his lips, a small shiver from his jaw. "Why not have Sanada stay with him?"

"Oh and you'll come look in the dark, dusty attic that may be spider and rat infested?" Though it held no sarcasm or maliciousness, Fuji's honest cheer worried him.

Atobe wrinkled his nose at the very thought and sat dignifiedly in the chair across from Ryoma. Fuji gave a soft laugh, leading Sanada up towards their destination. The door was still in place by the stairs, occasionally inching down. While Sanada busied himself lying it down, Fuji went up into the darkness.

He felt around for a second, using the edge of the door to touch the wall. He actually opened his eyes to allow them to adjust to the dark lighting before stepping forward. It was a large open space, the scent of incense and must heavy in the air. He slowly walked to the other side of the room, pressing a hand lightly onto the wall. He could make out the vague shapes, FEEL them, of kanji.

He gave a sudden sharp intake of air and he tensed when the spot he was staring at was illuminated. He turned slightly. "Ah, Sanada…" he relaxed marginally.

Sanada lowered the flashlight he had grabbed. "Here," he held it out for Fuji to take. He looked around the room, seeing nothing that immediately jumped out at him. "I don't think he got in any secret way."

Fuji turned the flashlight around to light up his face. "But we haven't really searched yet! Secrets aren't usually obvious, you know." He turned back to the wall, investigating the words scrawled out. So old fashion and nothing breaking them up…Fuji was sure if he had time to sit down and think he could manage to decipher what it was trying to say.

Sanada watched Fuji look at the walls before sweeping his light over the floor. Cobwebs were in every corner but only one fat spider was present. His attention was drawn to a hole in the wall. He crouched down to peer in. It wasn't very big; what once had been a blanket before moths had gotten to it rested on top of a futon that was a dark grey with age and split in the middle.

Well, at least they had confirmation that Ryoma was staying here. "Anything?" There was no reply. "Fuji?" He stood up, feeling the barest brushes of concern. The genius was in the same place he had been before but was…stroking the wall in front of him and there was a smile on his face, the smile that had caused all his roommates to figuratively shake. "Fuji!" when Fuji turned to him, Sanada actually back up a step. There was a glazed look to his eyes and Sanada had the eerie feeling his friend wasn't all there.

But then he blinked, "Sanada, did you find anything?" he asked as if nothing happened.

For a brief moment, Sanada toyed with the idea of demanding what the hell was going on. Then again, though, maybe he had merely turned paranoid. It was bound to happen with Fuji and Atobe around. He gestured vaguely to the bed. "That's all."

Fuji made a soft noise. "Saa, so he does live here, we just don't know how."

"That was our question to begin with," Sanada gave a frustrated sigh. "There's no logical answer." Fuji opened his mouth. "And no, hallucination doesn't seem logical either."

"Oh fine," he actually sulked a little. "Odds are one of these walls are hallowed out and lead down into a basement where a window is. Probably in the area of his bed."

"But what would be the point of that?" Sanada demanded, looking back to the hole.

Fuji shrugged, lifting his hands in the air. "Who knows? But it makes sense, right? What you wanted in the first place?"

There wasn't much of an argument there. Sanada had asked for a logical reason and had gotten at least a somewhat logical one. He still couldn't quite comprehend the idea of some kind of tunnel going to the basement; the second floor, okay. The first floor, testing the limits but possible. Into the basement? He started as he saw Fuji heading for the door. "Where are you going?"

"We solved the mystery," he tossed a smile to him, "I want to see Ryoma-kun again, he seems interesting, doesn't he?"

"Fuji, we didn't solve anything!" Sanada followed quickly, scowling, "We may have just opened more questions. Fuji!"

tbc

* * *

Oh shi...they finally let me update? Well yay!

Thank you to all who have reviewed, favorited, alerted, or have merely glanced it over. I appreciate it all. I'd create a heart here but it probably wouldn't show.


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